The word assaggio (masculine, plural: assaggi) in Italian refers to a small portion of food or drink taken as a sample. In English, it is best translated as taste, but other possibilities include sip (when talking about drinks), bite or nibble to name a few. Combined with the verb fare (to do / make), you …
The word for whale in Italian is balena (feminine, plural: balene), which comes from the Latin balaena. When talking about a young whale calf or balena giovane, the diminutives balenottero or balenotto are used. Whales are amongst the largest marine mammals (mammiferi marini) on earth, and are characterised by their streamlined hairless bodies, horizontal tail …
Sopravvissuto, the word for survivor in Italian, comes from the verb sopravvivere meaning to survive. It is formed of two parts: sopra (above) and vissuto (past participle of vivere ‘to live’). If you are talking about a woman instead of a man, the masculine sopravvissuto becomes the feminine sopravvissuta. Their respective plurals are sopravvissuti and …
The word for tiger in Italian is the feminine noun tigre (plural: tigri) which derives from the Latin tigris. It remains feminine regardless of whether you are talking about a male tiger (una tigre maschio) or a female tiger (una tigre femmina). It is the largest of the so-called big cats (grandi felini) that make …
The word for dragon in Italian is drago (masculine, plural: draghi). It comes from the Latin draco which in turn comes from the Greek drakon meaning serpent. Note: Anglophone learners of Italian might be tempted to use the synonym dragone since it sounds closer to the English word but drago is the preferred term. La …
When not in the midst of a short-lived diet regime, I have the terrible habit of binging on chips (or crisps as they are known in the UK) and French fries. There is something about their salty greasiness that just hits the spot! The word for both of these irresistible junk foods in Italian is …